The Sun. — London, England, 1810-07-19 00:00:00

STALE OF THE PlaSchys. [Concluded from Saturday's Paper.l That we, your Sub-Committee, having duly con sidered the circumstance of tees being , aken by, the different Keepers of the prisons within this city are of opinion the same should be abolished ; and that the Keepers and. their Assistants should receive fixed Salaries in lieu thereof, so that no partiality should be she wit to any description of prisoner ; but should this . Vorshipful Committee of the Court of Com mon Council differ with us in this opinion, we think it should be strongly recommended to the Right I - runourable the Lord Mayor and Court .of Alder men, to take into theirimmediate and serious consi deration the present fees, and make-such suitable alterations therein, as to them shall seem advis able. .•,. • • That we, your Sub-Committee, have forborne to make any further remarks on what .has occurred at our various views, and on the circumstances kvhich have come to our knowledge dUring our investigation, Jetiving it to the judgment of this Worshipful Com mittee and the Corpurtation at_ large to see the evi• dent necessity of adopting some new disposition of • the prison, within this city, and conceiving the mode reCommended by us will obviate mci•t of the ditficul: ties; and remove those serious evils which have been SO ' loog complained of ; but having, as we trust it Will appear, bestowed much time . and attention on this very important subject, have only to lam e nt that •vle cannot suggest a_pl.in foreffecting a substantial, moral reform in the .conduct pf prisoners, during their confinement in the present . goals.of this .city, owing to their confined- "spate, the great number of comlnitments continually arising in a large and crowded metropolis, and the frequency of the Ses• sions arid gaol delivery, and we. are not awa re t h at any pl4n - to produce sach desirable effect can be sug gested, beyond that of separatingcorivided felons from Owe - newly:committed, unlessa House of Correction was to be provided for the minor cl,isses.ot offenders, which have been found so highly beneficial in amend ing the conduct of criminal prisoners in various county , gaols of this Kingdom.' We trust, however, that the suggestions we lease already indde, if adopted, un der the vigilant stipernitewatice of the Magistrates • and Sheriffs of this ckty, will produce some benefi• cial consequences to the murals as well as the corn ..f arts of all classes of prisoners, and ultimately to the • health and - ±atety'of this metropolis. All whii•li we Submit to the judgMent of this Worshipful Coin , mittee. Dated this 16th Day of May, 1810. THOMAS BELL, Bow. WIGAN, Wjo. JOHN REEVES, .T. JACKS„ J..R. MANDES, Pam :Amu), • JOHN Otto. APPENDIX, No. 1., MR. , BOX'S REPuRT To the Worshipful tho Committee tor, Especial General Purposes. CnrilrLzazet;, , Jo answer to the letter I had the honour to re ceeive bryour order. two; .Mr. Town Clerk, desir ing my opinion as to the general state of his Newpte ; also; as to the ne cessity of glazing the, same, • and any other itteort-• yeniences which may have arisen ; Or, arc - n o vcr ex isting, 4n tire said g 0.41, I beg respectfully to offer the following observations : It is certainly rnosi- Obvious that the space allotted to the debtors, and women felons, is pertedly in adequate to the number of prisoners; and it is'a mat ter of *much surprise how those sides of the prison are Preserved trunk typhus ni intettious fever; when it is considered the average ,of prisoners the last year, greatly exceeded the calculation of Sir Richard Phillips. Op this consideration have not the least hesita tion in as:,erting the absolute necessity of enlaritig the pfkon. The opening the paisage. •to the Bail Dock would be in a degree beneficial but by no meins afford that relief the exigencies of the case requires. Sir Richard Phillips, I conceive., had not during his She' it - Tally a coinOlete opportunity or ascertain ing the insufficiency of the accommodaions on the male felons' side ; his observations having been made during a period of war., when male prisoneis, •trom obvious causes, are nut so, mirrerous ; had it been otherwise I have no doubt similar inconveniences would have been apparent on that side, as existed during the short interval ot.peace. Having said thus much as •to the expediency of enlarging the prison, I beg most respectfully to offer my oi.Union as to the necessity of classing the pri soners; and more especially separating the con vi fed those for trial : as a subject. of the highest importance. In the article of cleanliness, lime-washing has al. ways been in use ; but not to the extent adopted by Sir Richard Phillips. I perlettly agree w i t h t h at Gentleman as to its great , utility ; but I fcel it my duty lb suggest the necessity of mixing some co louring ina:ter with the wash used in the yards, as the sun's rays refleded from the white produce the most'painfol sensations in they eyes, and often oc casion opthalniy.. As to my opinion respelling glazing the windows, lam much concerned 1 am obliged to differ irnm Sir Richard Phillips, and I do this with more ludance when I perceive the respectable opinions of Drs. B I.ntigton and Adams countenancing the mea sure; but had I met those Gentlemen, : from the:in timate knowledge I have of the teuipers of the pri soners, their proneness to quarrel. and violence,;and general depravity, j have no_ doubt I slculd. have convinced them of its dangerous. tendency, More especially to the . Womens' side,. where the greatest dittleulty is experienced in obliging them to open the caseni,•nts sufficient to 'dissipate the confined beat anti air., . , ' The method I have hitherto adopted has been to de;end the ward from the incleniency Cf the weather at the! approach of winter, by a covering of oiled paper; wt ha's answered perleetly well., As I consider t casetuents properly regulated a per rtoal ventilation, t here is _another method which strikes me as prticularly meeting' the exigency of tile case, it is a strong Venetian shutter, capable of LON. being confined open or shut at the discretion of the attendants. . _ - - Having thui (I f e at, w ith much `tediousness) detailed my opinion of the general economy of the giol,. I beg leave to advert to a subject more imme diitely connected with my official duty : . 4. _Prom all the eircums i tapces it is my firm,per suasion -nothing but the building-'a new CoMpter',` _will remedy, the,evils pomplained of. Sir, ~ I am With the greatest, deference and respe&, Your obedient bumble servant, . . • LIJE:E HODGSON. :December, 18, 1809. LAW REPORT. COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, luty i 6. LIEWLINGS U. GILLER. This was an a6lion recover a compensation in damages for an assault and false imprisonment. The,Plaintiti is a , straw-hat manufaaurer, the .cle lendant the master of the Bald-faced. Slav public htitise on Finchley Common. - The case was stated by Mr. - Serjeant istsT,i who iv his address to' the Jury observed, that it was one of great oppression on the part of the defendant, and of considerable importance to the public; the decisibn, he hoped, Would convince inn-keepers that- they were bound to receive their guesiS and lodge them, if conducting themselves:peaceably; so the law provided. The present defendant had Com mitted a most grievous injury towards theplaintiif, by imprisoning him in conseqbence ot a demand made by, the latter of. .a supper and a bed. •The Learned SerjOnt then detailed the evidence,. having made some 'pointed obserVations upon the case generally. . Mr... Ambrose Welchman stated, that he, in corn-. patty with the plaintitf, who had dined with him at his It ruse at Islington on Sunday, the 21st January last, went to Finchley, hat provided theovielves with guns for. the purpose ot shooting. sni;yes fieldiares. About eight o'Adoek they reached the defend itit's Inn, with the intention of taking some supper and a bed. The defendant was then absent from home; and the servantstold ilium they could have, neither, for_ their master- had left orders to be careful of whom they. grit into the house. They procured some brandy aiid o rater, hoWeiVr. Agent 10 o'clock the deft-4)&4lft returned, the 'Sa'ne re quest,was repeated ; they gave t :eh names and de scriptions, offered a- 21. note as security, but could not prevail on the defendant, to allot them to re main, nor (as t was a latehOur of the night) to sit up by the fire. They ‘ , ,erellestred to quit the house; refusire; to go, the defendant sent for the patrole, who took them, accompanied by several persiAs and the defendant, to the prison at Finchley: When' they arm ived there it.ie key could not be found, and trey-were marched back a distance of two rni es, in a very cold !rest and snowy night, to the watch-house at High - gate, where they were charged by the de fendant as being riotous, searched, their guns taken from 'them, and they were locked up in the cage where•felOni are cotifined ; there Was no bed in the place, 'nor was there any fire ; 'nothing but some straw on the foot. In this place they remained till ten o'clock on - the following morning, when they were reinoved - from 'thence by the patrole .to the public house, here they - w:iited. snme time. The defendant at length came, and then they were taken before a Magistrate and discharged. . • In the course of the cross-examination of this wit ness, - he stated that' he had not quarrell-Q with a man named Jones who was. in the same room with him at the -defendant's house) before the defendant came in-.---that Jones having-observed they were ill used previous to the defendant's return, and after wards having said they had behaved ill, he then did call Junes " a double-faced rascal." Jones. them polled off his coat to fight. - . He admitted that/the patrole offered to procure thein a bed, but they did not chose to accept his offer. The defendant .said if peOple wished accomniodation at his house, they must send their servants before them. The Rev. Dr. Bennett, the Magistrate before .whom the plaintiff and his friend were taken, stat: ed, that when they' were coming towards his house, he thought fiom the crowd accompanying them, they had apprehended a felon. The plaintiff and . his ,friend seemed half dead with the cold of the night. The Rev. Magistrate particularly examined All the parties, and the result of his examination was the discharge of the accused, and a severe reprimand on the defendant for his-conduti. . Mr. Serjeant COCKELL addressed the ja7 for _the defendant, and endeztvourtal to impress them with the idea, that the witness had not told a cor reCt 'story ;—that it was improbable a landlord should, from mere whim or ca p r i ce , t urn customers .from his house;—that they had done every thing . they could, as he should prove by evidence, to irri tate the defendant, and that all they wanted was to get an action for,damages. Jones, the person before alluded to, and Taylor ) the patrcile, were called to .shew that the plaintiff had behaved riotously, but in this they railed. Mr. Serjeant BEST made a most animated reply. In the course of the reply he observed, that an inn keeper was liable. to an indi&ment, if he refused to accommodate guests. in his house. Chief Justice MANSFIELD expressed his sur prise that the law should be' so, and doubted the fall. - • Mr. SAjeant BE S T informed the Learned Judge, that for so declaring he had the authotity (which he cited) of Chief Baron'Comyns, of my Lord Hale, and some other writers. The case on both sides being closed, Chief Jus tice MANSFIELD observed, that the defendant had not made out a justification for his conduct in point of law, and- a verdict must therefore go for the plaintiff. The only question for their consifieration was the amount of . damages. " With respect to the law, aid the Learned Judge) I rather think it is with:the plaintiff. The plaintiff and his friend Welchman were guests; but what the law had in contemplation was these sort of guests, persons tra velling a distance from home. Innkeepers are coal, pellable to receive, travellers and accomodate them, so that they may properly rest and refresh while tra velling. These persons were not travelling, but going on a shooting party. If the plaintiff and his friend had gone away when the defendant required them, without obtaining what they demanded,' they might have brought an adion against him for not receiving them. The defendant, in this instance, seems to have erred from a mistaken notion .of the law, when he thinks he.was not bound to receive these persons." The J pry found 'a vkrdial for the plaintiff—D-' wages, I'Vty L'ouids. DR., CAOMPON V. ULTIVONT. This was an atlion to recover back, the•sum of 1.5 guineas, paid, as it NYas contended, to the plaintli 2 ' s own wrong, under the toilowing circurnst,lnces Dr. Croinpttin,.at the last Genera Bled ion, became „candidate for the town of ,Nottingham, in oppcol-, _lion to'Messts D. P.: Coke and Smith.. • The Ltildr Gentlemen,, however, were the Membersreturned.• The Doctor' not being content with the return, peT titioned the House of Comitons agaitstit..; and rite Commit u:c having duly ; examined the. allegatiousy and hvari witnesses in support of the p e ti L i e n, de termined that the return was good, and that ire sitting Meinbers were duly ekCicd. The conse=. yi - cnce of the decision was, that the Doc-tor paid a* the expences: of the inquiry. The dAcndant, CoY', poration' BAIT - of . the • ToWn, tinid i fig a 5 witness, and received the sum itt lOr attendance and the expences . ofthe journey. It bad., since 'come to the knowledge of the Doctor ilia he had:also becn paid i the opposite interest, ood the Doetur brought his ,adion to recover tack UkOrley. . • . , . Mr. FresMeld, Solicitor to the. Sitting Mernbris , prOvi-d the paytunt of the 1 . 71. on-::nuirdzntan. that lie-wa) paid by - the other side •Sein,f. the ,witnesses, !restate.", were paid 4.0;.. The .lout was on the road and in towa iiiogether tw - H% 4 days. The taxed bill which Doctor paid upwards or 7009. Mr. George Clarkson, Solicitor to the Do,: - !or , proved the pa meat of the i 5 gAitirass,for, attetidlllwe. Mr. Arthur - Benson, Cl , rk to the EleiYon Cori" tnittees.ot axe House of Co onvOni, that tinting Menihers wt re allowed thoir exceiic,.s ; that 171. w i:ie Hill amookt dmit..6lar 6 : it 1 - ,r h:s ii of tim Utl fr;.vet.ll4 expencei, sun{ p is by ci,e.sittin'L'vli.no beri and. rei Gburseci oy-t fie .p ChiefJu , tice MANsF.IELD t the quest;°a was between the candidates, a. d b twecn. petitioner and the wi.ines;. - the,.planititf- mast be tion-suited. heard of such anaclion, neverthel , .!ss he mould the point for the'o,3inion of the Co-r non-suited, with liberty to enter a' Vutdid, if ( 116 Court should be with him. ; • THE HEALTH OF THE PRISONERS. Froth the crowded sate of the gaol, without pro per bedding or sufficient •cloathing,• and under cir cumstances of disease and poi erty, a very consider able portion of sickness must prevail, and demand ,pf 016 Surgeon, a most laborious, painful, and' hazard ous duty, but though this is the case he can with confidence assert, the average of sickness and ,morta lity for the last five years .has„ Providence, been most favOorable ; ti,ii is chiefly attributable to the excellent regulations laid down' by the libtiour able the Court of Aldermen for the conduct of the lical attendant . ; and the huthane and honourable discretion allowed to him, in supplying the sick with every necessary support during the Ortgress of the disease, and the wholesome . accomModations provided in the several Infirmaries.. . Hoping the above opii,ions may coincide with those of this Wotsinpful CoMmittee; I beg io sub scribe myself with much respect, . Your most obedient humble Sefoant, W. H. Box., • APPENDIX No. It. MR. HODGSON'S REPORT. To the Chairman of the Special Committee of General rturi)s.cb. , In Order to give fult eirel• to your. report, I thought it'ptoper to lay betore you proceeding,, at the time the necessity of building a neW'Cotnpier was under colisi.teralion, and. it wil, be toinid comparing my opinion with the statement of Sir Ri- Chard Philli,:s y s bu k, addrea•ied to the' ivery, there is a concurrence of sentiment relative to the sate the prisons and the necessity of a,ttew pri,on being built ; without any personal communication thew on.. . • " `ln the year 1804, an Atl of Parliament was pa , sed for teint,ving the prrsoriers' front the Poultry, to Giltspur-streetCompter. I was .apvrett,:tisiv,t the crowding the prison, v ould ettd.inger the health of the prisoners ; nor was ,tiy cunjvctire wrong, : for tht'state"of tie priNoh, was ahaligru trom I,ealth, to disease, from comfort, to unitappiness, which cc casioned in M itch 1805, the following craes.ions, by the Sheriff's to_[ ,1 addressed to we, and toy answets; to whiLh were annexed the opinions of the best Authors who had written on gaol, and other con:- tagious disease s, in confirmation of my answers to ti , epropositions : Q.: scion i. Is the prison An' its present sfiiie ca pable of receiving mid affording accommodation, for any greater number of prisotias without imminent danger to theit- fieaiths in the present season a and suppose there beau increase, can the present num ber efintinue during Sutnlocr ihouttis without danger of occasioning au evidernic or other danger ous ilisease " Answer. I have thought. the 2 pricon in Giltspur. 7 street, ino.t judiaiously planned both for trie health of the prisoners, and safety of the metropolis fichit contagious fever, and by..uhservation mode during four years. successively having been appointed SUr geon, that the prisoners were not in general so healthy in the YoultiY, as Giltspur-street, arose from the difference of • the - - Cc:lnstruction of the buildings. - The prisoners Therefore being removed 'from the Poultry, to Giltspur-street, :have created an incon venience, which may lead to dangerous consequences, asthe prison since their removal 'has not preserved its usua;cleaniiness, the fir 4; and most necessary oh jeCt towards the presery ition - of health, and which principally arises front the quantity of prisoners; and 1-can, perceive their countenances bear an unhealthy appearance, which am satisfied - results,' froth the numbers being increased; therefore am pershaded, at the present moment the acconnuodition is not equal to the quantity of prisoners, 'and should no epidemic , disorder exist, there will require sortie material alteration, to prevent local distempers• being engendered from within. - • Question 2. Are there any other inconveniences in the prison likely to atieel the health of the prison ers, or Keepers, and . are there . any alterations, ad ditiOni, or other 'Measures, necessary to be taken to remedy those inconveniencies i Answer. There are no inconveniencies but what have been produced by the 'increase of numbers, which ate two. 1. 1:44.1 necessity of many sleeping in the sitting wards. 2. The slinging of hammocks ever the beds tend to obstruct the free ingress and egress of the air du ring the night, as in so .close a ward the perspiration naturally increasing during that period, together with the natural circumstances which trust be attended' to, the air must be rendered very un w h o l esom e, an d either in moist , 'or hot weather' endanger the health of the prisoners. I ;submit with deference a pai•- tial relief might be gained by the assistance of ven tilators, but it is only to be remedied by enlarging the prison altogether. LUKE HODGSON, Surgeon. March 12, dos. While these questions were under consideration, a committee Of Aldermen was appointed to ex - - amine into the state of the prison, and whose re port I understand coincided with the, above answers. There only remains a few observations on the con .tinuance of the deplorable state of the Poultry, and the crowded state of the Glltspur-street COM pteri. 1. The situation of the Poultry for the 'Sick af, fords tk• bppOrtunity for the Medical attendant to do duty, and the removing them io the sick ward in the Giltspur-streetCompter, would be attended with danger - of communicating disease. . 2. The prevention of disease in the Giltspur-street CornP . ter rrsnits from the.assistance of an airy sick ward, which ptiords the means of separating the sick, from the healthy, thereby preventing contagious infeclicin being communicated. 3. Notwi&tanding these advantages in' the Gilt bpur-street Compter, I perceive as befo r e stared the countenances put on a sickly appearance, and the re moval' of the prisoners at night to the charge rooms to sleep lays a foundation for chronic rheumatism. ON: Printed by RICHARD HARRIS, of No. 4, Martlett-court, Bow-meet; and P At the Sim-Optima, No. t 12, Strand. where Advertisements, Orders _, - - -- ~ ~ ~~ POLICE. MARLBOROUGH-STR EET.--Cane, better,knownll the . nick-name of Po Cane, who st o od charg, 6 .' - with having ob:ained divers sums of money bt 3 .Gentleman belonging to the Medtcal Board, wider threatot charging him with an abotninable and also IA ith steeJng his watch and appendage'' was yesterday br,,ught up from NT,.-yw Prison, and r"i examined.. The-case has-been reported,• a nd it be remember,d that fte.prisotter attacked the prose cutor in the field : i leading to Clietsea, and after 1 0 ':: lug snatched his watch, he ob:a;;:c money at dial: and oitieriinles, by threat of exposUre, and be taken in Landon-passage, whetie he met the pr o ' •s-cutor to receive 501. not to trouble him The prisoner stated in defence, that• lie had sot" cient property, a n d that he belon g ed t o th e C o ld-tro° ) Regiment ofUdaids, and he was wounded in the e'+' trencliments at Valenciennes, and afterwards di ' -charged. He protessed haying known ilie Pr"'` " cutor (who is a Gentleman quite out of A be reach O r suspicion of bad habit s ) t h ree :i oat h s. Th e p risone was fully committed for trial, and• on beirig take`' away, he said he should die i(inocent. HATTON-G A RDEN.—Yesterday 11•PGeet . 511 ' 4 : McGee, and James M'Gee, their son, not sev e " r. • years of age, and Eli z . Q u i g l ey, u nd erwent th° last examination, o n sus pi c i on o f b rea ki ng ope n If'c hearth of the garr e t wh ere i n t h ey l o d get, an d leit „ ing the boy downby means of ropes i n toa low`;' room in the Distiller' s A rms , on S a )( tfron-hill, °`, stealing linen and wearing ap , ,ar'el belonging t° lle, landlord, which was hauled up by ropes.—gilig - a was discharged, the b o y s e n t to t h e W or kh oui - : , his parebts fully committed for trial, QUEEN - SQljAßE.—Several respeaable 1 1813°( ' dashers, from the neilibourhoud of Bloomsborr square and Ri&mall, made their atpearance fore WILLIAM FIELDING, Esq. the Sitting Mag i !. trate, to answer to charg es p referre d b y two ottic l i belonging t o th e C ustoms . Th ey were . c harge with having in their possession a quantity of 13 ' 11 '; dana handkerchi e fs, F r e nc h g l oves, an d other va''l able prohibited articles. ,Titev were convicted, a l ordered to pay their respective fines, which ' v3s. done by each, before'they left the ofliCe.. SHIP Nalf.S. ,GRAVESEND, JULY 17. Arrived—the , Hind, Lumley, from Gibraltar; ton, from St. 'Lucia and the Hanson, truizl Malta. Sailed—the Governor Milne, Hayes, for I:eneriffe. BIRTHS. On Friday evening last, at Barton Rca - )ry, the Lady of t " Rev. I. Scholefield, of a Daughter. oc' On Monday last, in Upper Gresve,c,r.street, the Lady - Horace iteckford, Esq. ut a Son. MARRfED. 11: At St. -Martin's Church, Major A lexander Frazer, of' t- ; 76th Regiment, to Caroline, eldest daughter of john I s:Ju 'ston, Esc!: of Basing-House, Hertfordshire. uII1). :blished by WILLIAM ARMIGER SCRIPPS, South Molton.str•!et, cr. l .Y enor tqu ,,, , or the PC4per, Letters - for tbe Editor, &c. {pot!-paid), must be addr,:saed. On the 7th inst. Miss Augusta Henrietta Colleton, daugitter of Sir fathes Nassau Colleton, hart. 'aged 17. O n Tuesday last, at the Rettory, St. Paul's Cray,. F— e ' iti in the 19th year of h er age, M ary Arabella, second daugiii r of John Pearson, Esq. of Golden-square, Surgeon. Lately, at Paris, Mrs. Masterson, widow of T. Master' son, Esq. Last week, at her house in Stanley-place, Chester, Mr s ; , Glegg, relict o of John Glegg i E sq . o f Ir b y , in the s'n County. PRICE OF STOCKS YESTERDAY. Bank Stock, , I India Stmt. 1781 Navy c per Cent. 971 9 8 ii India Bonds, tos. Ics. 4 per Cent. 83 i 84,i* • Exact'. Bills, 2s. CIIS. 3 per Cent. Iced. 68 i- 1 4 Oinnium, zi 1 k 3 per' :: t. Cons: 67 4 2 68 if Imperial 3 per Cent. Bank L. Ann. 18 3-1601$ s. , C 0143. 69 4i I A 4 11(1 o r 4 th; to v e „ tv j4~ ~n t' • 41 10 I • i A; / ' t 4, rs. ~ 1-ti tu„. c l 'etl t;'l\it ,